Joe Bonamassa

Joe Bonamassa

"Its strange to think in terms of numbers when it comes to John Lennon. 30 years since that fateful day in front of the Dakota Building on 72nd street and 70 years since his birth. As a guitarist, John Lennon was happy playing a sideman role to greats such as George Harrison, Eric Clapton and Rick Neilson among others. His songwritting was impeccable. Faultless at times. Honestly though, that is a subject for one of Q or Mojo magizine's umpteenth articles analyzing the meaning of ‘Give Peace A Chance’ and ‘Imagine’. Not here.

"Lennon for me is all about being a guitar anorak. Let's start with the Gibson J-160E acoustic/electric. A dreadful electric version of the J-45 but Lennon loved it, used it and made it iconic and very collectible. The same goes for the much better early 60s Epiphone Casino and the Rickenbacker 365 model 3/4 scale in black. These guitars all started innocently enough, but with Lennon's name and legacy attached they became highly sought after collectibles. Plug ’em up through a Vox AC30, Vox Super Beatle or, if the Plastic Ono band is your speed, a 1971 Fender Dual Showman reverb and you’re golden.

"In 1980, the world lost one of its treasures. A talent the likes of a John Lennon will likely not come along ever again. His music and guitars will be talked about forever."

TG209 (on sale 26 November) features John Lennon on the cover and honours the working class guitar hero's contribution to the guitar world, including interviews with 'Nowhere Boy' Aaron Johnson and 'Imagine' session guitarist Joey Molland.